Death Note: The Story of Nami Nakamura
by NobodyOfANobody
Summary: Nami Nakamura, a twelve year old genius, runs away from home and soon finds herself wrapped up in an unusual story.
1. Chapter 1: Escape

_Alone,  
In a little park,  
Alone,  
Waiting for someone,  
Alone,  
No one is watching,  
Alone,  
So who are you waiting for?_

_Depressed,  
You're too young to be depressed,  
Depressed,  
You are depressed anyway,  
Depressed,  
Your past is devastating,  
Depressed,  
Yet you keep on walking with a half-smile._

_Crying,  
You have nothing to cry about,  
Crying,  
But you have nothing to laugh about,  
Crying,  
And that is the reason you cry,  
Crying,  
Wishing someone lend you a hand._

_Alone,  
Wishing you were dead,  
Alone,  
But you're too young to think those thoughts,  
Alone,  
But you're not too worried._

_Hope.  
A glimmer of hope shines within you._

Nami Nakamura. A genious-like IQ. She sat alone in a little park. Her 12 year old self couldn't take the pain that she was put through everyday. She escaped from her household. Her so-called family was barely a family. Her father was never home. He'd been convicted of several crimes, all of which, he was declared as innocent, and 9/10 times, he was guilty. Her mother was always at a bar. When she was home, she was forcing Nami to do anything she asked. Anything. If Nami didn't do as she was told, she would be severely punished. Severely. Her family never had any money. Then, when both her parents were gone, she packed her backpack with several items she would need, and left without another word. Anywhere was better than there. Anywhere.

I sat there by myself, knowing I would have to get moving soon. I knew that there were several places that I could not pass by, the reason being that one of my parents could catch me. I thought about where I could go. I couldn't stay in this town for the night. I checked my watch. 6:23 pm. I'd left the house about 45 minutes ago. My dad should have just come home. Which means I better make a run for it. I put my backpack on my back and started to walk again. The next time I checked my watch, it was 7:47. I had 625 in my pocket that I had saved up my whole life. It was my life savings. I would need it for food and stuff like that. I had walked right out of my town and into the next. I found a really big park, with a huge playground. This is where I'd stay. I hopped on to the structure in the center of the park and found a large tunnel. The metal was stragely warm, but then again, everything is warm during this time of year. I crawled into the tunnel, which was made of a strong plastic. There were little windows, but they were tinted in a way so that you could only see out of them, and not in. I took a blanket out of my backpack and a small pillow. I rested my head on the pillow and covered myself with the blanket. I fell asleep, literally, seconds after my head hit the pillow. I was out like a light.

I woke up to the sound of laughing children. I checked my watch. 7:56 am. I took a brush and a small mirror from my backpack and put my hair into a ponytail with the band around my wrist. I put everything back into my backpack and ate a sandwich I had packed yesterday. I drank a bit of a water bottle. I climbed out of the tunnel.

I walked on for the rest of the day, studing cities as I walked through and beyond them. I made some progress throughout the day. I occasionally stopped to eat or take a drink or sit in a store to cool down after the sun beat on my neck. I just walked on though. After all, what else could I do? There was no turning back. Not from here.

I checked my watch again. 8:17 pm. I looked around. I was basically in the middle of no where. It was basically vast fields that just went on. There were a few small houses or buildings through out the town, if you could even call it a town, but nothing worth looking at. I finally found a park with a play structure. It didn't look very well put together, so I took my blanket, spread it across the table, and lied down. I just then realized how much my legs ached from walking for so long. The pain wasn't letting me sleep. I just looked at the stars. Then I saw an older-looking man walk by. I sat up and took a look at him. He was the first person I'd seen in this town. He sat on a bench not too far away from me. He looked over at me.

"Have I seen you somewhere before?" he asked.

"I seriously doubt it," I replied.

"Where's your family?" he asked.

"What family?" I replied.

"You mean you're and orphan?" he asked.

"Something like that," I replied.

"Do you have anywhere to go?" he asked.

"I'm just wandering aimlessly," I replied.

"Are you truly alone?" he asked.

"No one is looking for me."

Then he said something to me other than a question.

"I own an orphanage. I can take you there, if you'd like." I looked at him and cocked my head. Who was he? He owned an orphanage? Then where the hell was it?

"An orphanage, huh?"

"Would you like to come back to my house?"

I just stared at him. I didn't exactly just wander into random people's houses. I'm sure he wasn't a child molester, but...

"I don't know..."

"Oh, right. I'm sorry. You probably don't just go with strangers to their houses-"

"No wait," I interrupted, "I want to go with you."

It was better with someone than alone. I doubt this old man was a potential criminal. He nodded.

"Thank you for your trust. May I ask what your name is?"

"Nami. Nami Nakamura. You?"

"I'm afraid I can't say now, but I will surely tell you later."

This old man was crazy. Ah, well, here goes nothing.


	2. Chapter 2: Watari

We walked a little ways to a tiny, worn-out house. That is, that's what it looked like from the outside. As soon as we got to the door, he stopped.

"If you have any electronic devices, then please," he paused, opened the door, and opened a safe, "give them to me now. It's a safety precaution. I have these objects that scan you as you walk into the door. If you have anything electronic on you, it will give you a shock. It's for security purposes. I wouldn't like a burglar just coming into my house, unharmed. It would only stun you for a while, but I really wouldn't like that to happen, so, please," he said, holding out a hand. I paused and nodded. I reached into my backpack and grabbed my cheap mp3 player. I handed it to him.

"That's all I have," I told him. He placed it in the safe and opened the door for me. I nodded in thanks and walked in. His house was amazing! One of the most well-decorated houses I've seen in a while. It was small, but cozy and nice. There was wood paneling on the ground. I big, brown rug covered a portion of the floor. Brown couches, which looked incredibly soft, were placed around two edges of the rug. A coffee table sat on the rug. A kitchen, almost everything in it white, was on the other side of the room. I looked around and was suprised when I didn't see a television.

"Don't you watch TV?" I asked. He chuckled a bit.

"No. I keep myself occupied with other things."

"All my father would do at my house was watch TV and drink. That was when he was at the house. God knows what he did outside of it."

"Not a very happy past, I presume?" he asked. I shook my head and softly laughed.

"Not really."

He just nodded.

"I can understand," was all he said. "Would you like to stay here for the night?"

I shrugged. "I have no where else to go, why not?"

"Then you can stay in the guest room. I'll show you where it is." He lead me to a nice room. Very nice. A queen-sized bed with blue sheets and white pillows. A wooden desk with a plant sitting beside it. A glass side-table next to the bed, a clock sitting on top of it. The same wooden floor as everywhere else around the house. I smiled at him, and he smiled back. "This is where you'll sleep tonight. Tomorrow I'll take you to the orphanage. Sound good?"

"Sounds great!"

"Great. Feel free to walk around the house." He walked out the door.

I unpacked the contents of my bag. There wasn't much in it. Then I walked around the house. I figured out where the bathroom was. Then there was an office. It held a computer and several bookcases filled with books. I looked at a majority of the books. They had various titles. Some were even manga. He hardly seemed like the manga type, but, no one can really hate manga, right? I walked out of this room and past the next. That was his bedroom, and I didn't want to disturb him. I walked into the next room. This room was different than the rest. It had a white board in the middle of the room. In it, there was an unsolved equation. It seemed that the equation was written in black marker, and the work to solve it was written in red. The math was off. I fixed the work in the work for the equation in a blue marker, then on the bottom, I wrote the answer with a green marker. I checked it over and it looked about right. I nodded in achievement. My legs suddenly started to ache again, so I hurried over to my bed and lied down. I fell asleep so quickly. The bed was so soft, so comfortable; it made me so sleepy.

I woke up at 8:05 am. It was nice to wake up to peace and quiet. I walked out the door, not even bothering to look at my hair yet. Scratch that, I didn't want to look at what that mess of black has become. I walked into the room with the whiteboard just for the sake of walking. It was the closest room to the guest bedroom.I found him standing in awe at the whiteboard.

"Di- did you do this?" he asked, sounding stunned. I nodded sleepily.

"This equation is part of a case I have been trying to solve for a while now. Neither me, nor my partner has been able to figure it out. Incredible."

"It was just simple mathemetics to me," I replied. That was the honest truth, after all.

"Simply amazing. Would you mind taking a test for me?" he asked.

"I will, if you tell me your name."

"Watari," he said.

"Yes, I will, Watari."

He led me to the guest bedroom again. He gestured for me to sit in the chair, and then he went into the office, grabbed a piece of paper and brought it right back to me. It wasn't just one piece of paper, though. It was several. Maybe 10 in all.

"If you can complete these sheets, then I will be truly impressed."

He left the room, and I began. They were all pretty unique. Some were mathematical equations. Some were, sort of, cases a detective would investigate. Some were just making an interpretation or stating an opinion. It was actually a bit difficult. But, the thing was, I was having fun. It was way more fun than school, where I didn't even have to try one bit anymore. It challenged me. After about an hour, I brought the sheets to Watari, all completed. He looked them over. His eyes widened, but he just nodded, occasionally muttering things to himself.

"Your ability is far beyond average, Nami Nakamura, please know that. Excuse me, I have to make a phone call," he told me. I nodded, and he walked into the bedroom. I think he soundproofed the walls and doors or something, because I couldn't hear a word. Nothing. Then he came out of the room.

"He would like to see you," was all he said.


	3. Chapter 3: Stranger

"Who would like to see me?" I asked.

"I will go into further detail later on. My orphanage, you are far too advanced for it, although you would be around others relating to your kind."

First of all, I had no idea what the hell was going on. What was there to go into further detail on? Just tell me who wanted to see me! And, I was far too advanced for the orphanage? Since when do you have to have a certain IQ to be in an orphanage? Relating to my kind? What was my kind? So many questions, no answers. I have to admit, this was way better than home, or shall I call it hell?

"I- I don't think I understand..."

"I'm sorry I can't explain so much now. It would be easier once we get to the destination. Is there anything at all that you need to pack?"

"Nope. I have everything in my backpack."

"Great. I packed my suitcase last night. Our destination, it's a bit far from here, so we'd have to go by plane. Is there any problem for you with that?" Watari asked. I shook my head.

"No, sir."

"Would you like to leave now?"

"Yes, sir."

He nodded. I went into the guest room and grabbed my backpack. Who knew this was ever going to happen? I walked with him out the door. He made a quick phone call before we went out the door. I grabbed my mp3 player out of the safe it was put in, then we walked outside. There was a limo waiting in front of his house. A limo! I didn't even care how it got there; it fascinated me! Watari walked up to it and gestured for me to get in. My jaw dropped. Me? In a limo? This was all too weird. I got in, of course, joyfully. Watari chuckled seeing my face. After an hour of exictement in the limo, we were at an airport. We got out of the limo. I lugged my backpack alongside me, tired of carrying it on my back. We walked through the airport. I've never been in an airport before, or anything like it at all. My expressions were apparently funny, because people walking past me were laughing the whole way. I didn't mind though, I was too busy taking it all in. Then I saw it. A necklace, but it was no ordinary necklace, it was amazing. All the details in it, it looked absolutely flawless in my opinion. So perfected. It was on display, almost glowing, as if making everything around it so dull. It was a simple chain with a charm. The charm was a red heart with small diamonds, probably fake, glittering and making everthing around it sparkle. My face glowed just looking at it. Watari stopped and looked at it.

"Do you like it?" he asked. I nodded vigourously. "Wait here."

He went into the store, and came out five minutes later, the necklace in hand. He handed it to me. I wanted to hug him, but I barely knew him, so it would feel kind of weird. I just smiled a great big, toothy smile and thanked him over and over again. I put it on and wore it proudly on my neck. Then we went through the whole process with the tickets, and the waiting, and getting on the plane. We sat next to each other towards the very back. In fact, we were in the back row. I turned on my mp3 player. The music and the plane's slight rocking back and forth lulled me to sleep. I woke up to Watari nudging me. Next thing I know, I'm in a whole new place. I didn't know where I was, and I didn't care!

Watari called a cab, and we were taken to a fancy building. It look 30 stories high. We walked in and went up the elevator. Floor 28, I think it was. Watari asked for my mp3 player again, to put in a safe. I handed it to him. Then he knocked on the door three times, paused, 4 times, paused, and slid a piece of paper under the door. It seemed like kind of a strange way to enter someone's home.

"Come in," a voice said. Watari opened the door quickly, allowed me in, shut the door, and locked it.

"Ryuzaki, I have her here," Watari called.

"Ryu... zaki?" I asked.

A strange looking man walked out from behind a wall. He wore a plain white, long-sleeved shirt, jeans, no shoes or socks, and his jet-black hair was messed up, like he just got out of bed. He was hunched over, not standing up straight.

"Hello. I'm L."

"L? I thought you said Ryuzaki. I still don't understand anything."

And what kind of a name was L? It wasn't even a name, just a letter! L... L... where have I heard that name before? Wasn't he a famous detective? Solved countless cases or something? Maybe... it's on the tip of my tongue, but I know I've heard of him somewhere before.

"Please, follow me," Ryuzaki- er, L said. Watari nodded, followed him, and I followed Watari.

We walked into a room. It was just a plain room. A brown couch and a couple chairs, some fake plants, a rug, a TV. He sat down on the couch. I sat across from him in a chair. The way he sat though, was something. I don't know if I could even call it sitting. He was, sort of, crouching on the couch, as if he was going to jump up and attack me. He looked like he was examining me.

"Nami... Nakamura, is it?" he asked. I nodded. "Watari tells me that you are very advanced. Not just for your age, but for mankind in general. You solved a case that he and I had been working on for weeks with almost no effort."

"A... case? What do you mean by that?"

"That equation you solved, it was they key to solving one of the cases I was working on. Solving that so easily... you definately aren't an average girl. And the test that Watari gave you was created by me, to test the intelligence of the children at Watari's orphanage for when they left. But you, so young, completed it with no mistakes."

So, what's your point? I'm smart, thank you, what do you have to say about it? Of course, I didn't say this out loud, but...

"I'd like you to join me in solving my cases."


	4. Chapter 4: Detective

"Me? Join you? But... but I'm only 12! And you're... an actual detective! I..." I was stunned. Completely and fully stunned.

"Really, when it comes to people like you, age doesn't matter. You're already as good as me, maybe even better. Why should it matter how old you are?" he asked. He had a point, but, still.

"Yeah. I'll join you." I had no idea what I was saying. This... this was something else. Way better than living at my old home. Could you even call it a home anymore? Who the hell cared anyway? I was working along side of a detective! This was amazing!

"Well, I have to go visit my orphange," Watari said, standing up, "Why don't you two get to know each other a bit?" L nodded. Watari left the room. We kinda just stared at each other for a while. I guess neither of us were really that good at communicating. He seemed like he was, sort of, examining me again. Still sitting in that strange position.

"Hungry?" he asked. Now that I thought about it, I was kinda hungry.

"Yeah, I guess."

He got up and gestured for me to follow him. I did. We walked into a kitchen-looking room. He opened up a cabinet. I saw sugar. Sugary sweets, doughnuts, marshmellows, packets of instant hot chocolate, chocolate-dipped strawberries, and cake. Lots of cake. Six whole boxes of cake. They were big boxes, too. He grabbed three chocolate dipped strawberries and a box of cake. He ate two strawberries and gave me one. I guzzled it down before you could blink, literally. Then he opened the box of cake. Half of it was gone already. It was a strawberry shortcake, I think. He cut two pieces from it and offered me one. I gladly accepted the offer. L didn't even use a fork! He just tore a piece of with his fingers and placed it in his mouth. I followed his example, seeing as I wasn't offered a fork. How often did he eat this stuff?

"So... L, is it?" He looked at me in response. "What do you like to do?"

Stupid, stupid, stupid. That was one of the stupidest questions I could have asked. It sounded like a childish way to start up a conversation, but, oh well.

"What do I like to do? I guess, solve my cases. I never really do anything else. Maybe I'll read a manga every once a month?"

Didn't seem like much of a life. Didn't start up much of a conversation either.

"So... L-"

Then a phone rang. Of course.

He walked over to it, still hunched over. Did he ever stand up straight? He picked up the phone.

"Hello? Really? Interesting enough. Sure, I'll take the case. I'll check into it soon."

He walked back to me again.

"Seems like we have a new case on our hands. This one is... rather interesting. The case of... Kira, they're calling it? A string of heart attacks centered on criminals."

For the next few days, he, I, and occasionally Watari, sat on our computers, seaching for information, digging out info from where ever we could. They even gave me my own laptop! My own! I never used it for anything other than solving cases that they threw at me, but still!

One day, while we were all working, I discovered an important clue.

"Japan! That's it!" I yelled that rather loudly. L and Watari stopped what they were doing immediately and looked over at me.

"What about Japan?" L asked.

"Kira! Whether it's just one person, or a group of several, they mainly operate in Japan! That has to be it! There's no other way!"

"What made you arrive at that conclusion?" Watari asked in response.

"The... the first victim. It wasn't recorded in the police records as a "Kira" killing, but, it was in Japan. A heart attack! If you were Kira, wouldn't your first experiment be a person that you could see whether you actually killed or not? I know that last sentence didn't make much sense, but do you get what I'm saying? And that information was only broadcasted in Japan, so the killer, or killers, must either live in Japan or reside there at the moment."

L sat there for a moment; he looked like he was pondering the idea. "An ingenious conclusion. Probably wouldn't have come up with a better deduction myself. I believe we have our information for the ICPO. Watari, could you set up a meeting within the next few days?"

"Of course. I believe the ICPO has a meeting in four days, would you like to set the meeting to then?"

"I believe so. Now, let us celebrate Nami's deduction with some cake in the kitchen."

I laughed. Classic L. Never can have too much cake, can he? But, I can't believe that it was what _I_ figured out that gave him a core clue. Of course, he probably would have figured it out sooner or later himself. Nevertheless, I did it! I was so proud of myself! Watari and I followed L into the kitchen, who had already got out the cake and began cutting it.

It's only been a few days, but I had already grown a tight bond with Watari and L. A tighter bond than I have ever had with my biological parents, by far.

We all ate our slice of cake, but of course, L ate about 4 pieces. Then Watari called the ICPO or something and set it up so that they could have a meeting. Well, I guess you would call it a meeting. We would all be involved, but none of us would show our faces. Could you call that a meeting? Well, we would communicate, so I guess it is. Until that time, we focused mainly on our other cases. What we do from here, when it comes to the Kira case, would have to involve the police in some form. So, until then, other cases would be where we focused.

Until then.


	5. Chapter 5: Kira

The next few days went on without an incident of any kind. Soon, four days had passed and the meeting was on. Watari was sent with a laptop that will allow up to communicate with the ICPO. What the ICPO didn't know is that we could hear their conversation before they could hear us. I thought this was kind of funny. They sounded so ridiculous; like brothers and sisters bickering. Then I heard it.

"... and if that's the case, we'll have no choice but to bring in L!"

Silence.

Whispers.

"But I've heard this L is extremely arrogant, and he'll only take on cases he's personally interested in!

"Me? Arrogant? Well, I guess you could say so," L whispered to himself. Then we focused back on the conversations of the ICPO.

"L is already on the move," Watari's voice echoed, creating silence. "Gentlemen, L has already begun his investigation. He also has an equally as as intelligent parter working alongside him."

More whispers.

"Please be silent. L and Y would now like to address the delegates."

"Y?" I asked.

"Seeing as there is already an N, we gave you the name Y based on your alias, Yuki."

"Ah."

A little window popped up on L's laptop telling him that Watari is ready for him to speak.

"Greetings to all of you at the ICPO. I am L. The difficulty in this case lies unprecedented scope, and make no mistake, what you are witnessing is an atrocious act of mass murder. One that is unforgiveable. This case cannot be solved without the full cooperation of te ICPO, that is _all_ of the police organizations you represent throughout the world. You need to make the decision to fully support the investigation at this meeting. Also, I require additional cooperation of the Japanese National Police Agency."

"What? Why Japan in particular?" A voice asked.

"Whether the guilty party is an individual, or a group, there is a strong possibility that they are Japanese, and even if they're not, we can be sure that they're hiding in Japan."

"What is all this based on?"

"Why Japan, you ask? I think I'll be able to provide you with proof of that after I directly confront the culprit."

"A direct confrontation?"

"At any rate, Y and I would like to set up the investigation headquaters in Japan. Thank you, Watari; I believe I am finished."

"Thank you for your cooperation so far. I will leave you to discuss your actions," Watari said, then left.

Later, a representative from the ICPO called and agreed that they would all cooperate with L. Then, we flew out to Japan. I was told that the headquaters for the investigation were only being used for the NPA in Japan, and L and I had to stay in a hotel. I had no problem with this, but I found it strange. L said it was in order to protect our identity. I guess I can understand why we had to.

L had set up a trap for Kira, trying to figure out exactly where in Japan he or she was. We were discussing it on the plane, flying to Japan.

"But L! Don't you think this is dangerous? You could die! You could be killed!"

"I am willing to take the risk. Besides, if I do die, you could take over for me. I know you have the ability to do so. I wouldn't trust that with anyone else. Except maybe Watari, but I believe you get my point."

I sighed. He was practically committing suicide! I guess he knew what he was doing, but I still disapproved.

We arrived in Japan. Everything was running smoothly. From the hotel, we set up the transmission from L's laptop the the TV station, for if it came to that.

"...a live worldwide broadcast from the ICPO. We now take you live to the ICPO."

"L! L! It started!"

The walked over the the television and sat on the ground right next to me, watching. Sitting in that funny position. His eyes widened.

"I am Lind L. Tailor, more commonly known as 'L'- the sole person able to mobilize police in every country worldwide. Criminals around the world are being murdered by a serial killer. I consider this crime to be the most atrocious act of murder in history. I will not rest until the person or persons responsible are brought to justice. Kira, I will hunt you down, I will find you. Kira, I've got a pretty good idea of what your motives are, and I can guess what you hope to achieve, however, what you're doing right now is evil."

After about half a minute, Lind L. Tailor clutched his chest and his face fell against the desk. L almost jumped up in suprise. He ran over to his computer. My eyes stayed in the TV screen in shock.

"I... I had to test this just in case, but I never thought it would actually happen. Kira, it seems you can kill people without being there in person. I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't just witnessed it. Listen to me, Kira, if you did indeed kill Lind L. Tailor, the man you just saw die on television, I should tell you that he was an inmate, who's exectution was scheduled for today at this hour. That was not me. The police arrested him in absolute secrecy, so you wouldn't have heard about him on TV or through the internet. It appears that not even you have access to information of these types of criminals. But I assure you, L is real. I do exist. Now, try to kill me! What's wrong? C'mon, right now, kill me! Go on, kill me! C'mon, can't you do it? Kill me!

"Well, Kira, it seems that there are some people you can't kill. You've given me a useful hint. Let me return the favor. I am going to tell you something you might find interesting. Even though this was announced as a worldwide broadcast, the truth is, this was only televised in the Kanto region of Japan. I had planned to broadcast this message around the world until we found you, but it looks like that won't be I neccesary. I now know where you are.

"The police treated your first killing as an unrelated incident, but in actuality, the first of your victims was a suspect in Shinjuku. Of all the criminals that have recently died of heart attacks, this one's crime was by far the least serious. Furthermore, his crime was only ever reported inside Japan. You can thank my parter, Y, for this information. We used Y's conclusion to deduce this much: you are in Japan. Your first victim was little more than an experiment, which means that you haven't been killing for very long.

"We decided to broadcast in Kanto first, because of it's large population, and luckily, we found you. To be honest with you, I never expected things to go this well, but it won't be too long now before I am able to sentence you to death. Naturally, I am very interested to know how you're able to commit these murders without being present, but I don't mind waiting a little bit longer. You can answer all of my questions when I catch you. Let's meet again soon, Kira."

The television turned black for a moment.

"Kira... I will hunt you down, where ever you're hiding and I will eliminate you. I am justice!"

It was silent for a while.

"L?" I asked.

"Yes, Nami?"

"Quite confident in defeating Kira, aren't you?"

"Why wouldn't I be? If you and I work together, there is almost a 100 chance of his defeat. You and I together will defeat Kira. Together, it's almost impossible not too. Now, time for cake?"

'Well, we haven't had any all day... all right, time for cake."

We would defeat Kira.

We would.

author's note So, so, so sorry this one took so long. I moved to another state and I haven't had internet for a long time. Too long. So sorry! D:


	6. Chapter 6: Speaking

L was staring out a window, apparently thinking. Probably wondering about Kira.

It was my turn to speak at the NPA meeting. This time, I was speaking. I'm sure I was completely capable of it, but still nervous.

"L, Y," Watari's voice came from my laptop screen.

"The meeting is about to start. Which one of you is going to be speaking?"

"Y," L answered.

"I'm linking you to the meeting now."

"All right, let's start," a voice said.

"Yes, sir," another followed. Up to this point, we've recieved 3,029 responses about the murders, via telephone and email. A majority of these were curious citizens and prank calls, but there were 14 people who claim to either know Kira, or have seen him. All 14 accounts were followed up on and carefully documented. However, no one could provide any information other than what was publically available. And lastly, this week there were an additional 21 people claiming to be Kira. We didn't want to rule anything out, so we followed standard procedure and created files for all 21 of them."

"A-huh. All right, on to the victim reports," the first voice said.

"Upon further investigation, we have confirmed that information of the heart attack victims was in fact publically available in Japan immediately prior to their deaths. And concerning L's request that we investigate the time of death for each victim, we found that all of them were between the hours of 4p.m. and 2 a.m. on weekdays. 68 of those occured between 8 p.m. and 12 a.m. Weekends and holidays appear to be the exception to the rule, as the times of death vary much more widely than average."

"That information... it's like a new piece to the puzzle. It suggests that the suspect could very well be a student."

I looked over at L after I stated this, and he nodded as if he were thinking the same thing.

"Based on the fact that he's killing criminals, I think his or her motive is justice. He might even aspire to be something like a god. In any case, this individual has a very childish concept of right and wrong. Of course, this is just a guess, or a mere assumption, so please, continue with your investigation."

"All right. Does anyone else have anything that they'd like to add?" the first voice said again.

"Uh, yes sir."

"What is it, Matsuda?"  
"Um, well... I'm not saying this to support Kira, or to praise the murders at all, but in the last few days through out the world, but especially here in Japan, we've observed a dramatic decrease in the number of violent crimes commited."

"Well, I suppose it makes sense. We've figured something like that would happen. Thank you, Matsuda. Anything else?"

"No, sir."

"Well that about sums up our report for today. Y?"

"Thank you everyone. I feel that we took a step forward in finding the identity of Kira, today. L has one additional request for you. This is directed to the teams investigating the TV, news, and internet. He would like you to go back and take a closer look at the exact way the victims identities were made public. Please be as thorough as possible. In particular, he'd like to know if photos of the victims were made available to the public in Japan. I'll leave it to you. L and I both thank all of the NPA. Goodbye."

After that, him and I had some hot chocolate and then he told me to go out and buy some more cake. I did, of course. Who doesn't want cake? When I got back to the hotel, Watari was there. He told the both of us that he had scheduled another meeting with the NPA in two days. Meanwhile, we continued to solve our cases as usual. The only thing a bit strange was that, every once in a while, L would just go to a window, and stare at it blankly. Did it help him think or something? Ah, well, I didn't give it too much thought. Before I went to bed that night, L came up to me.

"Why do you think he couldn't kill me? I want your opinion."

I thought about it for a second. "Well, let's compare the circumstances. Lind L. Tailor had his name and face on national television. You, on the other hand, did not. Maybe that's why he couldn't kill you. Maybe it's because he needed your face, or your name, maybe even where you were. But there was some element missing that he needed to kill you. He had that element with Lind. L Tailor."

"My thoughts exactly. Thank you, Nami."

"No problem."

I drifted off into sleep.

I woke up and immediately started working on the cases I was given. I think I made great progress. I solved two by 1:00 p.m. They were a bit easy, but I still solved them. I got up to get some milk, and I saw L sitting on a chair, looking like he was thinking.

"Hey, L?"

"Hmm?"

"I have a question for you. Why do you sit like that?"

"I have to. By sitting like this, my reasoning skills are increased by 40."

"So, if I sat like that, my reasoning skills would be raised by 40?"

"Well, I doubt it, seeing as you are already as smart as me, at age 12 and without sitting like this, but I suppose."

"I'll have to try that sometime."

I grabbed a glass from the cupboard and poured some milk into it. I took a break for the rest of the day. Using your head to it's extent nonstop can really get to you. I slept a little bit and played around on my laptop. Then I fell asleep and woke up again. The next day, I worked all day to solve one case. It was rather difficult, but I solved it.

So, the next day, there was another meeting with the Task Force. It was L's turn to speak. Watari was in the back of the room, and I don't think anyone noticed. As always, we could already hear what was going on over there. I heard a lot of whispers. There was one person that I could hear pretty clearly.

"L is pretty mysterious, that's for sure. But the person I think is even more mysterious than that is Y. Who the hell is he? The NPA has heard of L before, but never a Y."

"And this Y person is pretty good. He kinda has to be to work with L. At any rate, no matter how mysterious they are, we need them to solve the case."

"Right."


	7. Chapter 7: Ice Cream

"L, Y, which of you are speaking today?" Watari asked us.

"Me, Y," I answered.

"Thank you, Y."

"So, are we ready to begin?" Watari's voice asked firmly.

"Ah, yes, Watari. Let's begin." A voice stated.

Someone said something that I couldn't quite hear. He, was sort of, mumbling.

"What!? I don't believe this! Another twenty-three victims yesterday! Are these confirmed?"

"Yes."

"The day before, there were another twenty-three victims. He's killing one off, every hour, on the hour."

"Considering this new pattern has been going on for two weekdays-"

"-it does punch some holes in the theory that our suspect is a student."

"Maybe not. Anybody can skip two days of school."

I thought about it for a second. Something didn't add up. Every hour, on the hour. And just as we suspected a student, the pattern changed. On the hour... what are the odds that Kira is awake every hour, killing people on the dot of every hour? It hit me.

"No. No, that's not it!"

"What are you talking about, Y?"

"Sure, it looks less likely that Kira's a student, but there's something else going on here. He's telling us that he can control the time of the victim's death. Before you say anything else, just listen to what I have to say. Every hour, exactly on the hour? How could someone do it so precisely? And, something else. They are all in prisons, where the deaths will be easily discovered, and not other criminals, like before. It all adds up.

"And, another thing. Just as we suspect Kira's a student, the pattern in the murders changed, as if to contradict that theory. I'd hardly call this a coincidence. This led me to believe that Kira has access to police information. It fits. Just like a puzzle. I'll soon find all the pieces. This... certainly is a challenge. This is my conclusion. Thank you, members of the Task Force. I appreciate your time. Watari?"

"Yes. Does anyone else have anything to add, or ask about Y's conclusion that doesn't make sense?" he asked.

"No. Thank you, Watari. And, Y and L, as well."

"No problem at all."

A window popped up saying that I was disconnected from the Task Force headquarters.

L sat behind me, the nail of his thumb in his mouth. He looked like he was thinking.

"You did well, Nami. It was strange; just as I was on a trail of a deduction, you took the words right from my mouth. I believe we are truly alike, you and I."

He seemed to be staring off into space again.

"Would you like some time alone to think?" I asked. I felt like I was only bothering him. I didn't want to be a nuisance.

"Yes, please. I, I think I need it right now."

I nodded, and walked to the door.

"Would you like me to bring you something? Strawberries, waffles, cake?"

"No, no. Thank you."

I closed the door and walked to my bed. I placed my hand on the creamy white, silk sheets. It felt so soft. It was almost calling me. I climbed into it and threw the blanket over me. I was so tired. It was dark, after all. I fell asleep for the day. And woke up to the next.

There was another meeting at the Task Force headquaters again today. This one wasn't going to be as late, but still pretty late. Thank god I didn't have to go anywhere to be a part of one of these meetings. Today I didn't even have to say anything, just listen. I started again on a case that I began yesterday. It was a bit tough, but I found the answer. I just have to put my deduction into words. Then I would get started on another difficult case. I would be pretty busy for a majority of the day.

Around noon, Watari called me to the door and asked me if I wanted to go out for ice cream. I happily said yes. We went for a drive to the ice cream shop. We walked in, ordered what we wanted and waited. Chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream is like pure bliss.

We sat down and ate what we ordered.

"So, you and L seem to be getting along."

"Yeah, I guess."

"Most people find him too strange to even talk to, much less understand."

"Really? I find him to be one of the easiest people to understand."

"Nami... you are more like him in ways than you can count."

I sat silently for a moment.

"Well, why do you say that, Watari?"

"I... I don't think I know myself. You remind me a lot of him when he was your age. You even remind me of him now. It's just something. Or maybe everything. I can't explain it."

We both sat in silence for the rest of the stay there. We ate our ice cream and drove back to the hotel. I was thinking about what Watari told me. Were we really all that alike? Was I really one of the only people who could understand him.

Come to think of it, no one really understands me, other than him. Well, I guess Watari as well, but I seem to relate to L more.

It made me wonder about so many things.

We went back into the hotel room, and I silently worked on my case until it was time for the meeting with the Task Force.

"All right," a familiar voice said after Watari hooked L up to the meeting, "we are ready to begin."

There was a pause and I heard something hit a table.

"What!? What's this about?"

"With all due respect, Chief, we're resigning. We demand that you assign us to a different case, otherwise you can have our badges right here and now."

"Why? You're good cops!"

"Isn't it clear? It's because we value our lives, sir. If what L and Y say is true, Kira has some ESP-like power that allows him to kill people indirectly, from anywhere. If I were Kira, sir, I'd probably try and get rid of the people who were trying to catch me. Let's face it, he knows he's sentenced to death if he's caught. We all sat here and watched when L decided to pull that media stunt and challenged Kira to kill him. It was all very impressive at the time, but then again, L never had to show his face or reveal his name, for that matter. I'm sure you recall L's request. He asked that we take a closer look at how the victim's identities were made public, and specifically to make sure photos of the public were made available prior to their deaths. Well it turns out, he was right! Every single one of those people's photos where broadcasted to the Japanese public and then they died! Unlike some people, (here it was obvious that he meant L and I) we're out there investigating this case carrying police IDs with our names and faces on them. Anybody with a computer can find out who we are! We don't hide our faces, we're out in the open. The truth is, we could be killed by Kira anytime. For these reasons, we refuse to continue working on this case. Excuse us, Chief."


	8. Chapter 8: Experiment

"Wait! Stop! All of you, hold it right there!" I assumed that was the chief speaking, seeing as I couldn't see much on the monitor. There was nothing much going on for the rest of the meeting. Just stating what was already previously stated. Kira was supposedly a student, in the Kanto region of Japan, with access to Task Force information. I don't know why it took so long to do so.

After the meeting, Watari's face appeared on the screen.

"L, Y, we brought the FBI to Japan four days ago. They're fully operational. As requested, they are now gathering intel on the police."

"And this is the complete list?"

"Yes."

"List of what?" I asked, cluelessly.

"The list of people with access to police information. I'm sure that in this list of police officers and the people closest to them, we will find Kira."

"That's one long list."

"Well, it's shorter than a list of all of the people in Japan. If we just make a separate list of students to investigate first, then it might make it that much easier to find Kira. Although, it is a possibility that Kira wanted us to suspect he or she was a student."

"How big of a possibility, would you guess?"

"About 10. No, less than that. 7."

"Not a very big possibility, but a possibility nonetheless."

"Correct."

"So, what are we going to do with this?"

L smiled.

"Investigate the suspects."

I nodded, and we walked, side by side, to our beds. L was in the bed next to mine, and next to his was Watari's empty bed. I never saw Watari go to bed, or wake up. I just know that he went to bed every night, because I would make his bed every night, and in the morning I'd have to make it again. L never slept. He just sat on his bed, either thinking, or pounding away on his laptop. I never minded the noise of his typing when I fell asleep. I slept every night, but I never really slept that long. Maybe four or five hours. Never too long. I just didn't really need it. Unlike L, though, I would eat a healthy breakfast. Well, Cheerios and fruit. I guess a breakfast healthy enough to satisfy me.

I fell asleep and then woke up again.

"Nami," L said, opening up a window in Wordpad on his laptop, "What do you think of this list? Here, I've got the suspect's names and on the opposite column the FBI agents following them for a few days. I don't see any conflict with the list, myself, but feel free to check it over."

I nodded and looked it over. I looked at the first suspects being stalked. Amaya, Hideaki, Light, Miyuki, Gin, and Fuyuko. They were mostly girls, I assumed. I couldn't even tell if Light was a boy or a girl named. I looked over his last name. Light Yagami. Was that the cheif of the Task Force's son? I think it was. His last name was Yagami, right? I knew he had a son and a daugher. His daughter was named Sayu, so his son was named Light. Not an average name.

L came back into the room, cake in hand.

"So, do you see any problem with the list?"

"I don't think so. Then again, I don't really know these people, so it wouldn't be likely that I see a conflict in the list."

"Ah."

I handed over his laptop. I tried to sit like him. Maybe it would do something. I was going to attempt sitting like that all day. I'm not sure it would work for me. Maybe I needed practice?

One day passed after L released the FBI agents to investigate the suspects. I practiced sitting like him the whole day. There was another meeting with at the Task Force headquarters again today. L and I were told not to be involved in this one. I think they needed a break from us. I would.

My computer beeped and Watari appeared. L walked over beside me.

"What is it, Watari?" L asked.

"Three more heart attack victims, but the circumstances of their deaths are different than what we've seen thus far."

"What do you mean by 'different'?" L and I asked together. I thought it was strange that we said it at the same time.

"I'm sending the both of you a copy of a letter as well as pictures taken from the scene."

"Okay."

"It looks like... he knew Kira would find him," I whispered.

"By the look of it, he was afraid that the time was soon," L responded, his voice almost sounding like a whisper. "Although it is a possibility that the inmate just wrote the letter out of fear, seeing as Kira can control the time of death, what if he can control the circumstances before death? In which case..."

He contacted Chief Yagami and the Task Force.

"Chief. We can't give this information to the media. As far as they're concerned, these are just heart attacks. I have reason to believe that Kira was performing some kind of test using these criminals. If that's the case..."

"... we'd be only giving the results," I continued. I understood what L was saying then.

"Right. I understand," the chief said.

There were some whispers in the backround of the Task Force headquarters. L was biting his fingernail; he looked like he was deep in the thought process. I started thinking, too. A test, or an experiment with the criminals. If it was an experiment, there is a great possibility that he has a plan in mind. But maybe, these are clues to something. L, sort of, gasped.

"Is this..." he mumbled, staring at the computer screen. He seemed to be reading the first word of each line.

_Lord have mercy,  
__Do what I can, I'll either be hanged or  
__you know it, killed by Kira. I  
__know about him. He's going to get me._

Lord, do you know?

Or L do you know?

Is that a message?

Or is it to distract him?

Or does it simply mean nothing at all?

* * *

Author's note- Sorry this one took a little while. I just started school and I've been a little busy. I should be getting back on track pretty soon, though.


	9. Chapter 9: Manga

"L... do you know.. what?" I was talking to myself, or maybe talking to him. I don't know which.

L stared at it. Then he looked away.

"L, do you want anything to eat? I'm kind of hungry myself, so I can get something."

"Cake sounds good right now, thank you."

I nodded, walked into the kitchen, and cut two slices of cake. I placed them gently on paper plates so the strawberries wouldn't slide off, and so the frosting wouldn't be smashed. I got out two plastic forks and put them on the plates as well. Then I put one of them back, remembering L doesn't use a fork at all. I carried them back the room with the comuputers. L ate his slice, practically before I blinked. He almost swallowed it whole!

"Anything else I can get you?" I asked, purely out of old habit.

"No, I think I'm fine for now."

I ate my cake and took a break on working on cases for today. All three of us did. It was my suggestion, considering we never do anything other than solve cases. Watari agreed, and L agreed. Whether Watari influenced L's decision, I didn't know, but L looked like he needed some sleep at the very least, but some kind of break. I walked to the library and looked for a new manga series to read. I saw one called Naruto that looked interesting. I've heard that it was very popular, but never bothered reading it myself. I grabbed the first five volumes and checked them out at the window. Of course, I needed a library card. L told me that I should never give out my real name, so my alias was either Yuki Watanabe or Amaya Takahashi, whichever I felt like that day. For my library card, I put down Amaya Takahashi.

After I checked out my mangas, I thought about L. He needed something to do. What was he interested in? He loved detective cases, so maybe a detecive novel? No, he would solve it before the book had barely started. Maybe another manga? I read The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, and I enjoyed it, but I don't think L would like it. Well, maybe he would. If he didn't read it, I would just read it again. Or he could read my Naruto mangas. Whatever would make L happy, would make me happy, I guess.

Did I really care about him that much, that whatever would make him happy, would do the same for me?

Well, he did take me in. He did feed me, help me with anything, ask for my opinion, give me a bed, and pretty much take care of me in any way possible. He was like, well, I don't know what he was like to me.

I checked out the second set of mangas and walked back to the hotel. Watari smiled as he saw all of the books in my hands.

"Going to do some reading on your day off?"

"I planned on giving some to L. He needs something to take his mind off of detective work while keeping his brain working."

"Ah. Well, I'm going to go out to America for a couple days or so. I expect that you and L will get along fine while I am gone," Watari explained.

"Well, all right. See you in a few days, Watari!"

He nodded and walked out of the door.

"Oh, and Nami!"

"Yes?"

"Take care of him, please."

I laughed. "Me? Take care of _him_? Sure, all right!"

I walked into the computer room, setting down my stack of mangas.

"L? L, are you in here? It's so dark, I can't tell."

"I'm over by the window."

My eyes adjusted to the lack of light, and I walked over next to him. I stared out the window with him. The city was beautiful at this time of day. Around 5:45 p.m. The sun just started to set and the city was busy with people. It just made you think. Maybe it _helps_ L think. I see how it would. It's just one of those things. Looking in a mirror would sometimes help me think. Sometimes I'd just stare into a pool, or a body of water, and watch the ripples in the pool, and look at the patterns. It just was fascinating to me somehow.

See? Looking out that window made me go off on a tangeant.

"I brought you mangas, if you want to read them. Would you like to read with me?"

He looked over at me. He stared into my eyes. His eyes looked like they were yearning for something. He nodded and looked over at the stack of books. He walked over to them, and he took a good look at them. Like he was examining them. He picked up volume one of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya and read the summary. He did the same to Naruto.

"May I read this one?" he asked, holding up The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya.

"That was the series that I originally picked for you. I figured it'd be right up your alley."

He nodded and turned the cover. He held the book unusually. He used his thumb and index finger only. I suppose if you get used to doing that, it would be simple to do, but it looked difficult. I picked up the Naruto volume one and began reading. Ninjas. An interesting topic. It was funny in a sense, but the actual plot line was quite serious. It sat next to L the whole time. He seemed really engulfed in the story. I eventually got tired, and I was too lazy to get up and go all the way across the rather large hotel room to my bed. I just rested my head on L's shoulder. He didn't seem to mind it much. I think I drifted of into sleep.

When I woke up, I found myself in my bed.

He picked me up, set me in my bed, and placed the sheets over me.

I smiled.

* * *

-author's note- A chapter that is a bit strange today. Not a typical chapter. However, it is relevent to the story. Just wanted to say that. xD


	10. Chapter 10: News

I sat up, and I walked to the kitchen. L was on his laptop, apparently talking with someone.

"Yes... thank you, Ms. Belle. Next, Raye Penbar."

"What are you doing?"

L looked over at me.

"I can see you just got up, judging by your bedhead." I looked up at my hair. Well, as much as I could. From what I could tell, it _was _all over the place.

"Well, I wouldn't sound so smug about it, if I were you. You always have a bedhead, and you don't even sleep."

"Probably true. I never do anything with it. I don't even bother."

I laughed and sat next to him.

"You still didn't answer my question."

"Oh, right. I'm contacting the FBI agents, and telling them who they are supposed to follow."

"Ah."

He punched some numbers into the keypad that he plugged into his laptop.

"I told Raye Penber to be alone at this time to contact me... so he should be out of the public right about now." He pushed the "3" key. "Raye Penbar, this is L. Yes. The Yagami family and the Kitamura family. However, I would like you to focus on Light Yagami, and Hideaki Kitamura, seeing as they are both most likely to be Kira in those families. But, still, inspect the whole family. Yes, that is how I see it. Thank you, Mr. Penbar."

"Do you need any help with anything?" I asked.

"No, I believe that I am fine. But Nami, I feel that some of the members of the Task Force are starting to distrust us. I would like you to learn some sort of protection for yourself by looking at online videos, just incase a situation comes up. I doubt there will be, but there is a chance, and I wouldn't want to risk it. I have already learned many different defense mechanisms, but I will help you if you need it. If you don't mine me suggesting, I think you should try capoeira, but that's just a suggestion."

I stared at him for a second. It was almost like he was commanding me to, as if I had no say in it. I seriously didn't mind, though. He wanted me to learn self-defense, and he was probably right about some of the Task Force not trusting us. No, he _was _right about it. So I nodded, ate a chocolate strawberry, and left to the room that had my laptop. I was given a case, so that became my priority for the day. At about 2:00, I took a break for an hour or two, and started to learn capoeira, as L requested. Then I looked in the newspaper for recorded deaths by Kira.

Ichiro Nakamura. My birth father.

Ayako Nakamura. My birth mother.

Honestly, I felt relieved. I felt horrible about feeling relieved, but I did. I still hated Kira, so much. But, then again, they were my parents... no, I wouldn't forgive. Not after what they did to me. Not after what they put me through. Not after how they "punished" me. Not after my childhood.

Goodbye.

"L?" I asked.

"Yes?"

"Can I... keep this newpaper?"

"Why do you want to?"

"Come here."

He walked his hunched back over to where I was sitting. I pointed to the names.

"Nakamura..."

"Yes. Can I... keep this... to record the day of their death?"

He nodded. I took the newspaper into the bedroom and shoved it under the bed I slept in.

I went back to my case.

But the whole day, I was thinking about the strangest things after that. Just things. Not neccessarily about my parents, but something about their death made me think more about things. It, surprisingly, helped me solve my daily case earlier than I had planned. It just made me pay attention to every thing. I had no idea why, but I just did. For the rest of the day after that, I worked on the capoeira. Then I went to bed.

The next day, it was forgotten, as if nothing had happened.

I woke up to L packing some bags.

"L...?" I asked.

"We're switching hotels."

"Oh. I have nothing to pack, so I'll help however I can."

"Hot chocolate and marshmellows?" he asked. I nodded, and made two mugs of it. I added extra marshmellows to L's mug, of course. He can never have too many. I handed him the mug, and he sipped it strangely, like he always did. I sat on the couch, attempting to sit like he normally did. I sipped my hot chocolate. It burned the roof on my mouth. How could he drink it when it was so hot? Why am I not suprised? He can do almost anything.

I waited for it to cool, drank it, then grabbed my laptop and left the hotel.

L and I drove to one a few blocks from the old location. We checked in, headed up to our hotel, and unpacked the small amount of things that we had in our bags. I opened my laptop to see what case I was assigned, and I had an email from Watari.

_Nami._

_How are things going for you too? I'm at my orphanage located in America, currently. All of the children really are quite amazing, as far as mental ability goes. There are a lot of people like you here, but no one nearly as talented, I'm afraid. I hear from L that you two are solving your cases with extreme ease._

_I'll be back in Japan soon enough. I think that I'll leave tomorrow. See you soon!_

_Watari_

I sent him a message back.

_Watari,_

_We're doing fine, so far, thank you. I don't know if L told you, but we switched hotels. And yes, I have been solving my cases quicker than usual, now that I think about it. Maybe my skills are improving._

_See you soon!_

_Nami_

The next day after that, Watari came home.

A few days from then, I was watching the news when I saw something strange.

A busjacking.

There was a weak video of it, but the bus sercurity cameras don't have the best quality. I could barely make it out. But in the back, I saw a face that I recognized from L's computer. I saw his face clearly.

Raye Penbar.

The odds of him just appearing on a bus, where there is a busjacking, while inspecting the Kira case...

...are slim to none.


	11. Chapter 11: Cake

Then the clips repeated on the television.

"L! L! Come here! Hurry!"

Luckily, he was close enough to me that he could reach the television within 5 seconds. I pointed towards the back of the bus.

"Who does that look li-"

"Raye Penbar."

"Exactly."

"This... is interesting. The odds of this happening with Raye Penbar on board are not likely. This may just be coincidence, but I'll keep this in mind. Thank you for showing me this."

He seemed suprised.

"L, which family was he investigating that day?" I asked.

"I don't know. He was free to choose which one he investigated every day."

"Oh."

L's computer beeped. It was Watari.

"Yes, Watari?"

"Another victim. This one left what appears to be a suicide note. I'll send you the link now."

There was a pause. "Gods of death... L do you know... gods of death... Is he trying to tell us that gods of death exist? Listen, Watari, tell the police to monitor prison populations closely for the next few days. Kira may use suicide notes to communicate with us."

"Understood."

"Anything to add, Nami?" L asked.

"Not that I can think of at the moment."

About another week or so passed. It was the usual. More cases, more criminals. I don't think that the contents in the next week are worth much detail. The Task Force held no meetings, seeing as no information was leaked at all, other than what they already knew. Then, something interesting came up.

"L, Y, you have a call from the director of the FBI," Watari's voice said.

"It's me," the director of the FBI said afterward, "I've got a report in front of me right now stating that all of our agents in Japan are dead."

"Dead!? All of them!?" I bursted out. I blushed, feeling embarassed about just blurting out like that.

"Yes. All twelve died of heart attacks. I could only assume that Kira is behind this. I'm sorry, but it's decided. We're calling off the investigation." He hung up. Then I head Watari's voice again.

"I have Chief Yagami on the line."

"L," he said, almost panting from what sounded like anger, "I just got off the phone with the director of the FBI. According to him, it seems that you arranged for the FBI to come to Japan and investigate everyone associated with the Task Force."

"Yes, I did."

"So, how do you explain this? Are we now suspects in our own investigation?"

"I felt that is was neccessary to uncover Kira's identity."

"I can not accept that! I find it unbelieveable that you would spy on us! The very people that are working with you on this case!" Then there was some talk in the backround that I couldn't hear. It sounded like mumbling through the speakers that L and I were using.

"And, we have another victim. A note was found at the scene. I am sending it to you know."

The note showed up. L immediately looked.

"...love apples. Damn you, Kira," L muttered.

"That's it!? That's all it says!? Love apples!? Kira... Kira you bastard," I said, not knowing who I was talking to. L looked at me, envy in his eyes. Not towards me, but towards Kira. I sat over next to him, trying to comfort him. He looked at me again, and his eyes looked a little softer. I half-smiled. Watari then forwarded us an email from the Task Force headquarters's email address. We had a meeting the next day. It came way sooner than I expected.

"We now know that Kira doesn't just target criminals," Chief Yagami started, "He'll kill anyone that goes after him. It's quite possible that we may all be killed by Kira. Think of your own lives, your families, and all the others you'd be leaving behind. If anyone wants to leave this investigation, now is the time. You won't be demoted if you choose not to stay; you have my word. But if you're not absolutely sure, then we don't need you. You have to be willing to fight against this, even if it means making the ultimate sacrifice. That is all."

There was scheduled another meeting later that day for all that chose to stay. I finished my case early that day, and L was busy, so I decided to bake a cake.

I told L that I was going to the grocery store. He handed me 35.00 and I went there, got the ingredients, and paid for them. I still had 23.00 left over, so I bought a strawberry cupcake for L and a blueberry cupcake for me. I took the bus back to the hotel, and then gave the cupcake to L. His reaction was somewhat like a child's. His eyes widened and he had a huge smile. He thanked me endlessly, I nodded, and went back out to the kitchen. I got the ingredients out of the plastic bag, and then I got my laptop and searched "strawberry shortcake recipe". I clicked one that looked semi-easy and followed the steps. So, after about 30 minutes of work, the batter was ready to go into the oven. I poured half of it in one cake pan, and half into another. I put the two cake pans in the oven. Then I got the strawberries out of the package and started cutting some of them up. After I cut about half of them into bits, I just cut the leafy ends off of the rest. The cake was done by the time I finished. The smell of the moist, vanilla cake billowed out of the oven and I could hear L's mouth making an "mmmm" noise from the other room. I placed one of the halfs on a plate and frosted it. I threw the bits of strawberry on top of that. Then I put the unfrosted half on top of that, frosted it, and placed the other strawberries around the edges. I walked into the room where L was sitting.

"L, I have something to show you. Come here."

He looked at me mysteriously, but nodded. He followed me into the kitchen, and then he saw my creation.

"I made it just for you," I told him.

"You... you made this?" he asked me.

"Yeah, I did!"

He beamed at me. I laughed and walked over to the cake and cut him a piece. He tore a small piece off and threw it into his mouth. The whole time he was eating it, he was saying things like, "It's so moist!" and "Mmm... strawberries." I looked at the time on the clock. 6:48 pm. The meeting with the Task Force started at seven. I nudged him to look at the clock, and he carried his plate into the bedroom, where his laptop was.

L decided to speak this time. We heard Chief Yagami's footsteps go through the door.

"Welcome back, Chief!" one of the men in the Task Force said.

"Only five men..." he paused, "No, I should say there are as many as five men willing to risk their lives to confront Kira. Including me, that makes six. But how can we continue when we're this understaffed?"

"But, Chief, if you include L and Y, that's eight. And Watari, that's nine!"

"The fact that you all have chosen to stay means that you have a strong sense of justice; I trust all of you," L said into the microphone.

"Hold on a second. L just said that he's decided to trust us now. But honestly, how can we trust him? Or a better question, Y?"

"Look, all of us are risking our lives to bring Kira to justice, so I hope you know what this means. We're out here in the open, but you two never have to show your faces, do you? I don't know how you can expect us to just work alongside you like that!"

Silence.

"L, Y, if all of us are going to work together on this investigation, and if you really meant what you said about trusting us, then you come here so we can all meet in person."

I didn't see how that would work. I wouldn't mind walking around with L beside me, but to others it might look like a child with a pedophile tailing her. L doesn't exactly have the appearance of an average adult.

"The thought had already crossed my mind," he said. I stared at him in disbelief. "After all, I did say that I trusted all of you." L pressed some buttons.

"What did you do?" I whispered.

"Sent a message."

* * *

-author's note- So sorry that this one took so long! It was a combination of writer's block, procrastination, and computer problems. I reward your patience with a longer chapter than normal. Enjoy. xD


	12. Chapter 12: Meetings

"Well, what does it say?" I asked.

He opened a word processor on his laptop and showed me the message.

**I request that the following events remain a secret between the nine of us. Y and I would like to meet with the six of you as soon as possible. Before that, I want you all to go outside of the police building and decide for certain if you trust us or not. **

We heard footsteps go out the door, and we waited.

They came back in the door again.

"For those who are left, we are staying in a suite in the Imperial hotel, but I'll be switching hotels every few days from this point on. I want you to think of these hotels as a de facto headquarters for the investigation. If this arragement is acceptable to all of you, then split into two groups and come two the hotel thirty minutes apart from each other. Please arrange it so you're all here at midnight."

It was 7:32 pm. Everyone from the Task Force would be here to see us at midnight. What the hell are they going to think?

11:42 came. I found L staring out a window.

"Kira... I think that right now, we're even in how far we've closed the distance between us. But the clue I've managed to get was obtained by sacrificing the lives of twelve FBI agents. Twelve precious lives. So I'll do this. I'll show myself to others as L. If you manage to find about about this, Kira, you'll definately move in closer. Bring it on. Even if you get a look at my face, you can't kill me without knowing my name. And even if I find you, I can't prove you're a murderer unless I catch you in the act or nail down hard evidence. But I have Nami and the Task Force on my side. Kira... what are you thinking right now?"

I could tell that I wasn't meant to hear that. Oh well. He didn't really mind, did he?

I changed my clothes just for the meeting. I put on new jeans that Watari picked up for me a while back, put on a blue tank top and a navy blue sweatshirt, because this hotel room was cold. I put a necklace with a key as a charm on my neck.

It was 12:02. I heard a knock on the door.

"It's unlocked. Please let yourselves in," L told them.

They walked in. They stared at us, clearly in shock. Their jaws hit the floor. It can't even begin to describe the expressions on their faces.

"I'm L," L said, rubbing his ankle with his opposite foot.

"I'm Y," I said, my hands nervously behind my back.

Complete silence.

"Soichiro Yagami, of the NPA," the person who I could tell Chief Yagami was.

"Ah... Matsuda."

"I'm Aizawa."

"Mogi."

"Ukita."

"I'm very sorry we didn't get here earlier. Currently the five of us are-"

L raised his hands into a gun-like shape.

"Bang!" he shouted. I put my hand over my mouth, trying to hide my laughter.

"What the hell was that!?" Aizawa yelled.

"If I were Kira, you'd be dead, Mr. Soichiro Yagami, Chief of the NPA. Kira needs a face and a name in order to commit a murder, but, I'm sure you've already figured that much out, haven't you? Please do not give out your names so carelessly. Instead, let's value our lives," L explained. He seemed rather cocky at the moment.

I saw Matsuda talking to Mr. Yagami. The others just stared dumbfounded at the both of us. I can understand their reaction to L, and, hell, they figured out that a little, twelve year old girl was working with them on the case of Kira, a vicious killer. The case of Kira, one that none of the NPA could even begin to solve. When they saw that I was working on it, one can only imagine what's going on in their mind.

"That's enough small talk for now, come this way," L told the Task Force members.

"Ah, right," Matsuda said, sounding nervous. I stayed silent; I had nothing to say.

"Please turn off your cell phones, handhelds and any other communication devices and leave them on the table right there."

"What, do you think we're gonna be using our cell phones during this meeting to leak information?" Aizawa snapped back. I seriously thought about saying some "things" to him, but I was too tired and too shy.

"It's all right, just do as he says," Yagami responded to him.

"Thank you, Mr. Yagami," I said, almost whispering. He nodded. They all placed their cell phones on the checkered coffee table.

"I know they've been cautious from the very beginning, but I still can't tell if he trusts us or not," Matsuda whispered, but apparently wasn't aware of how loud his whisper was.

"No, I just find it distracting. I can't stand it when people's cell phones are ringing when I'm trying to talk. Now, Y will explain most everything." The Task Force members walked into the room. L told me what to say a while before.

"All right, no one is to take notes in here. All important information must be commited to memory. Oh, and you can go ahead and sit on the couch, if you like." They all nodded and sat on various couches and chairs. L seemed to be watching them, as if studying them. Just like he did to me when I first met him. L looked at me, and I nodded, heading to the kitchen-like area to get a pot of hot chocolate. He poured himself some, and looked at it, like it was missing something. Sugar, figures. He added several sugar cubes to the mug.

"Um, excuse me, L-" Matsuda started.

"Oh, and from now on I'll have to ask you to stop calling me L and calling her Y. I'm Ryuzaki and she's Yuki now, just to be safe."

"Uh, okay, _Ryuzaki, _if we know that Kira needs a name and a face to kill, then couldn't we cut down on the number of victims by keeping names from the news?" Matsuda asked.

"If we do that, we'll only be putting the general public at risk," L said.

"The general public?" Aizawa responded to L's statement.

"Kira is childish and he hates losing." Somehow, everyone but L's eyes fell on me.

"But how do you-"

"Just what do you mean?"

"Well, I am also childish and hate losing. That's how I know," L said.

"I can same the same about myself, but seeing as I'm only a child, it's no suprise," I said. Somehow, that sounded more sophisticated than I intended. Yagami peered at me.

"Ryuzaki, would you mind being a little more... specific for us?"

And of course, no one gives a damn about what I say.

"Early on in the investigation, Y and I tried to provoke Kira with that broadcast. Up until then, we thought that Kira would only go after criminals, but as we all witnessed, he didn't hesitate to kill my stand-in. Also, as soon as we were sure he was in the Kanto region, as if in defiance, his next victims came from within Japan, as if to say 'What are you gonna do about it?' He's met each of my challenges head on, and he's never missed the opprotunity to return the favor. Now, what do you think would happen if we tried to use media restrictions to hide criminals from someone like that?"

"I guess-"

"'If you choose to withhold the names of your worst criminals, I'll be forced to kill petty criminals or the innocent. I'm holding the whole world hostage, here, so what's it gonna be? I'm not the evil one here. All those who oppose me by hiding criminals, you are truly evil.' Ah, that's exactly how Kira thinks. In any case, let's look at another way that we can use the media to draw him out."

"But how?"

L already told me what we were doing, knowing that the members of the Task Force would agree with what he was said. I felt left out of the conversation at that moment. I looked at L and he nodded, as if telling me to go ahead.

"How about something along the lines of... death of FBI agents anger the US; nations agree to send 1,500 investigators to Japan. This will be too much for Kira to handle, and he'll have to take some kind of major action, leaving us yet another clue."

"That's interesting!" Mogi exclaimed.

"So, he'll think there are 1,500 when there are only seven- er, eight of us! And since none of these members exist, Kira won't be able to kill them."

"It just might work!"

I still have no idea if they take me seriously or not. Actually, I do have an idea. There's no way in hell that they're ever going to take me seriously. Oh well.


	13. Chapter 13: Questions

NAMI IS BACK! 8D I apologize for not putting up a new chapter in months, I just didn't have time, and I thought I gave up on it. But then, I gained inspiration, found some time, and now it shall continue. So here it is, Chapter 13: Questions.

* * *

"Now, before we celebrate, I'll tell you the rest of my thoughts on the Kira case. Kira works alone. He had access to all of our classified information."

"What evidence do you have that he's working alone?" Aizawa asked.

"Hold on a minute, Aizawa. Let's hear all of what he has to say before we ask any questions," Yagami stated. I nodded in thanks.

"We know he needs a name and a face to kill, and to some extent, he can control the time of death and the actions in which the victim does before dying. We already know that much; please keep that in mind," L was telling us all. Now this, he didn't fully explain to me, so I was learning along with the Task Force. He pulled out a marker and snapped the cap off. "Now listen carefully to what I have to say next.

"On December 14th, 12 FBI investigators entered Japan," he said, writing this down as he said it, "Now, here we are on December 19th. Using inmates, Kira conducts experiments manipulating his victims actions before they die. In other words, in this mirror of only five days, Kira became aware of the FBI's presence, and obviously felt threatened. Because he didn't know any of their names or faces, he was at a disadvantage. He needed to know how much control he had on his victims before he could use it against those twelve agents.

"During this period, to the best of our knowledge, at least 23 people died from heart attacks. But these victims were different from Kira's previous targets. They were all alledged criminals, ex-convicts or suspects in an ongoing investigation, so legally speaking, they were innocent."

"That's true," Yagami stated.

"What this indicates is that Kira had to manipulate these criminals in order to kill those FBI agents. He killed that man people so we would be unable to tell the decoys from the people he actually used. In truth, he probably only needed a few. He waited eight days so the FBI could investigate other suspects, which meant there'd be no timeline linking him to their deaths. I suspect that Kira had to be one of the people being investigated by the FBI somewhere between the 14th, and the 19th. In fact, I have no doubt."

"That makes perfect sense!" I bursted out, feeling closer to finding Kira. Then, embarassed, I looked down at the ground, cheeks turning bright red. L looked at me and just nodded. He held up some papers.

"These are files provided by the FBI. They contain additional information that you might find useful. For obvious reasons, you're not allowed to take these out of this room, but-"

"Amazing!" Matsuda interrupted. "There might only be five of us, but with this information, we'll be able to cover a lot of ground!"

_Uh, five? _I thought to myself. _Don't you mean seven? Well, eight, if you count Watari, but he hasn't shown up yet._

"Let's split into two teams! One team traces the FBI agents; the other focuses on the heart attack victims," Aizawa said.

"There weren't that many people that had access to information from the headquarters, and of those, the FBI only investigated a small group in the first five days."

"Yeah!"

"So, does anyone have any questions?" L asked, almost sounding irritated. No, strike that, he did sound irritated.

"Actually, Ryuzaki, I do have one question for you," Yagami said. "And it pertains to what you said to us earlier about how you hate to lose. Does the fact that you've shown us your face mean that you've lost? Just by us being here, are you admitting your defeat to Kira?"

"That's right," he answered, with a bit of sadness in his voice. His voice really reflects his mood. "By showing my face to you now, and sacrificing 12 FBI agents, I have lost the battle. But, I'm going to win the war. This is the first time that I have ever put my life on the line. I want to show Kira that we're all willing to risk our lives if that's what it takes. Justice will provail no matter what." He was smiling now. It was actually really, well, cute.

"Hey, yeah! That's right!"

"I like the sound of that!"

"We can do this!"

"All right then, let's do this, Ryuzaki!"

Once again, I was forgotten. No one cared about the little 12-year-old girl, was what I figured from the situation.

"Before we go any further, Y and I have to be absolutely sure that none of you are Kira. We need to speak with each of you individually before you leave today."

"What's the deal!? You still don't trust us?"

"No, I think it's a fair request. Try to see it from his, er, their prospectives. Kira has been getting information from our headquarters since the very beginning, so there's a good chance that he's one of us," Yagami said. Thank god for Soichiro Yagami.

"Yeah, he's right," Matsuda agreed.

* * *

The members of the Task Force were over there conversing. L was staring into the window, and I stood next to him.

"L?" I asked.

"Yes?" he answered.

"Why do they treat me like such a child. You and I figured out more than they did, and they don't give me any credit at all."

He sighed. "Part of it is just the stereotype that comes with being a child. Children are considered naive. It's just a label. They have a hard time adjusting that they're working with a twelve year old girl. It's funny, the irony. They are being the naive ones."

I knew that, myself. I wanted someone to say _something _to me though.

"I know what you're thinking. Your chance is coming right about now. We have to question each one of them to make sure none of them are Kira. You'll take Matsuda, Mogi, and Yagami. I'll take Aizawa and Ukita. You remember what I told you earlier, right? I expect you know what to do."

I nodded. I was a little scared. The task force didn't see me as a higher up compared to them, so how could they take me seriously? Ah, the dilemma of being a twelve year old. Well, I had Matsuda, Mogi, and Yagami. Matsuda stuck me as, well, not the smartest in the world. I pretty much already ruled him out, but you never know. He's one of those that won't take me seriously. Mogi struck me as a hard-headed man. He won't take me seriously either. I'll just have to gain their respect over time, then. Yagami, on the other hand, is another story. I could tell that he had faith in me, or at least he pretended enough to seem like it. If he was Kira, it would hurt me so much. I digress, the point is that he _would_ take me seriously.


End file.
